From Newbery-winning author Betsy Byers comes a story full of ``poignancy, perception, and humor`` (The Chicago Tribune), about three foster kids who learn what it takes to make a family. You cant always decide where life will take you--especially when youre a kid. Carlie knows shes got no say in what happens to her. Stuck in a foster home with two other kids, Harvey and Thomas J, shes just a pinball being bounced from bumper to bumper. As soon as you get settled, somebody puts another coin in the machine and off you go again. But against her will and her better judgment, Carlie and the boys become friends. And all three of them start to see that they can take control of their own Iives.